


You Have Not Touched Me (Yet)

by erinn_bedford



Category: Prodigal Son (TV 2019)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, dani's hands are cold and malcolm is a baby about it, inspired by last weeks ep, others are mentioned - Freeform, these two are killing me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-18
Updated: 2019-10-18
Packaged: 2020-12-21 12:20:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21074792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/erinn_bedford/pseuds/erinn_bedford
Summary: "Your hands.” He holds out his own and beckons her, and for whatever reason she complies. She drops her hand into his, and he flinches, just slightly. “Your hands are freezing.” His hands are warm. Like insanely warm. Probably a side affect of his constant moving.Or, Malcolm's going to get a restraining order against her hands.





	You Have Not Touched Me (Yet)

He’s staring. 

Has been for the last twenty minutes at least, long enough for her to almost finish her crossword puzzle. Long enough, that if it were anyone other than Malcolm Bright, it would have passed the super weird mark about 17 minutes ago.

But, he is Malcolm Bright, so instead she is just ignoring him. Because she doesn’t want to startle him. He’s been staring at her for about 20 minutes, and his hands haven’t trembled in about 16, and if this is what it takes for him to relax for a few moments, she can deal with the odd feeling of being _seen_ while she gets in her own few moments of her own relaxation.

If Gil asks, she’s been writing her after action report. Definitely not doing a crossword puzzle. But Gil doesn’t ask, because she always gets her reports in, and always before JT, so she’s not worried. Crosswords clear her mind.

Maybe zoning out while staring at people is what clears Malcolm’s.

“Do you have bad circulation?”

Her pen slides right off the page, effectively ruining her almost prefect crossword.

“What?” Dani lifts her eyes to him, and his head is tilted, ice clear eyes already waiting for her.

“Your hands.” He holds out his own and beckons her, and for whatever reason she complies. She drops her hand into his, and he flinches, just slightly. “Your hands are freezing.”

His hands are warm. Like insanely warm. Probably a side affect of his constant moving.

He stares at their hands a moment before his eyes flicker back to hers. “You should talk to your doctor.” His hands cup hers and they are warm, warm, warm. 

“Some people have cold hands, Bright.”

“Some people have bad circulation.” 

He’s still holding her hand, and suddenly more than his hands are warm. Her cheeks are warm. She feels like the entire room has warmed up serval degrees.

She’s not a fan.

Something crashes in the common area, and she jumps back, pulling her fingers from his grip. 

Malcolm blinks. Then he shakes his head and stands, stretching as he does, instantly becoming more of the Malcolm Bright she knows, almost vibrating with chaotic energy. “Think Gil will let us outside now, or will we be punished because you haven’t finished your report yet?” He says, tossing in a teasing smile that makes her want to punch him.

“You are allowed to leave whenever you want, you know. Perks of being a consultant.” Dani says, stuffing her crossword under her notebook so she can officially get to work. 

“I do not miss the paperwork of being a special agent” Malcolm agrees.

Dani glares at him and turns to the half done report. “Lucky you.”

Someone knocks on the glass of the conference room, and they both turn, Gil shaking a new folder at them.

Dani sighs. New case. More paperwork.

Malcolm looks almost giddy. Dani grabs her things, and smiles at Malcolm as he holds the door for her.

Then she brushes her fingers across the back of his neck and he yelps, and she runs off before he can retaliate.

“Why are your hands so cold!”

xXx

There’s a box on her desk. A box with a bow. She vaguely recognizes that is only a week until the holidays, and that she is woefully behind on present shopping. 

But it doesn’t explain the box. The precinct had given up on white elephants after a disastrous year that lead to nothing but chaos, and her and JT had decided to be the type of people who exchanged old bottles of alcohol, so the box with the very pretty bow is a mystery.

“Ohh!” Edrisa rushes up to her desk, drowning in a scarf that is almost as big as her. “Is that your gift from Bright?”

“Uh,” Dani picks up the box and finds the label, Malcolm’s terrible handwriting a clear give away.

_Dani-_

_For your hands ;)_

_-Bright_

“Yes. I think it is.” 

Edrisa wraps her scarf closer around herself. “He got me this scarf.”

Dani smiles, Edrisa’s contagious mood spilling around her. She carefully opens the box, and a pair of gloves fall out.

Real, genuine leather gloves. The kind the fancy rich kids used to wear when she was in college and they wanted to look rich and fancy.

“Ohh.” Edrisa moves closer to get a better look. “Those are lovely.” 

Dani slips one on and it’s a perfect fit. Thy are soft and warm, and she can’t help but smile.

Malcolm Bright was worried that her hands were cold.

It does a stupid thing to her heart, but she ignores that. 

“I think he went for a winter protection theme in his gifts.” Edrisa says, holding out her scarf. “Feel how soft. He got JT a wool hat. And I’m almost positive Gil’s surprisingly festive turtle neck is also courtesy of Bright.”

The scarf is fantastically soft, and exactly the kind of thing Edrisa would choose for herself. He’s good at this. Finding gifts for people that are functional and meaningful, and she almost hates him for it.

“Huh,” Dani says, letting holding out the other glove for Edrisa to try on. “This glove is surprisingly soft as well.”

“Maybe he just really likes soft winter gear.” 

“What’s the point if it’s not soft.” Malcolm says, appearing over Erdisa’s shoulder out of nowhere, wearing a ridiculously festive hat. 

“I see you got your gifts?” he asks. He’s smiling, but Dani can see the tiniest bit of uncertainty in his eyes. He’s nervous. It makes the stupid feeling in her heart multiply.

Edrisa nods hard enough Dani’s afraid she’s going to hurt herself. “Yes. Thank you so much! I love it.” She holds it the edge of it out to him. “It’s so soft.”

The uncertainty in his eyes flashes away as he prattles to Edrisa about the importance of soft scarfs and some science thing but it’s back the second he turns to Dani.

She stretches her hand that’s still gloved, and feels her lips quirk up without her consent. “They’re very warm.”

Malcolm’s smile matches hers. “I’m very committed to making sure everyone stays warm.”

Before she can answer, JT claps Malcolm on the back, wearing his own hat, much more subdued than Malcolm’s. 

“Bright, what’s your favorite alcohol.”

The conversation derails until Gil has to heard them into a semblance of productive, and Dani let’s herself get lost in her thoughts once everything settles down. 

Malcolm Bright bought her gloves for Christmas, because he knows her hands a perpetually cold. It’s stupidly cute. 

She slips the gloves on at the end of the day, and from the corner of her eyes she can see him smile to himself. And this time, when her heart squeezes just a little too tight, she doesn’t ignore it.

xXx

It’s odd, Dani notices, how one second, he can be panicking, and the next, be so exhausted he looks almost peaceful. 

His apartment is quiet, except for Sunshine shuffling in the corner and the sound of his breath slowly working its way back to normal. His eyes are closed and the worry has seeped out of his face, and for a second, Dani can forgot that not 10 minutes ago he was in the middle of panic attack.

She’s seen the tremors and been present for some of his outbursts, but she’s never seen him like this. 

But he’s calmer now, his breathing back to normal, his hands still in his lap, eyes closed as she watches him from her side of the couch. She was here by accident, dropping off a case file he had forgotten, and things had been okay until he got a phone call. Well, more like 7 phone calls, that he all promptly ignored until said caller started texting, and then it happened. She never had training on how to help someone through a panic attack, but they were here now, on the other side, both still in one piece.

She reaches out and gently presses her fingers against his forehead, one of those moves she inherited from her mom who would do this to her and her siblings no matter what was ailing them as kids.

Malcolm hisses softly, hand snapping up to grab her wrist, not bothering to open his eyes. “I am going to get a restraining order on your hands.”

“Oh, really?”

Malcolm opens a single eye in an attempt to glare at her.

His thumb runs over her pulse point. 

Her cheeks may or may not flush.

“Yes. They cannot come within ten inches of me unless thoroughly warmed.”

Dani shifts so she’s slightly closer to him. She doesn’t move her hand. He doesn’t let go of her wrist.

“How do you propose I warm them, Bright. Pretty sure you're the one who decided I have a medical condition.” 

He gives her a tight smile, one that if he wasn’t coming down of a panic attack might have been less strained. “I’m glad you asked.” He turns her hand in his and stares at their interlocked fingers instead of her face when he talks.

“You can sit on them. Stuff them in your pockets. Hold a nice cup of very hot tea or coffee for a bit.” Her keeps talking to their hands, but his arm is moving now, twisting her palm so it’s face up. “Blow on them. Or my personal favorite, rub them together.” He says, and then he does just that. He rubs his hands gently over hers for a few second before bringing her hand back up to his cheek.

“Ahh,” Malcolm closes his eyes, and lets go of her hand. “Much better.”

Dani wants to kiss him. It’s impulsive and spells for a disaster, and is definitely not in the “how to care for your friend after a panic attack” manual, but she really, really wants to kiss Malcolm Bright.

She let’s her fingers trail down his cheek, over the day old stubble he has growing and he leans into her touch. 

He’s tired. Exhausted. She can see the dark circles under his eyes, and she’s positive if they stay still for long enough, he will fall asleep on her.

“Bright,” Dani says, pulling her hand away from his face. His eyes pop open and he follows her hand as she brings it back other lap. “Do you want to talk about it?”

He blinks, and suddenly he’s a different person. No longer the Malcolm she’s only seen glimpses of, but Bright, the man who shows up to crime scenes with a mask on his face, over compensating in personality for something she hasn’t quite pinned down yet.

“Yeah! I’m great!.” He forces a smile, and when she doesn’t smile back, he cracks. The mask slips off again. He drops his head to the back of the couch. “My sister has been seeing my dad.”

She doesn’t want to push him, so she just sits, listening. 

“And he’s, well you know, a serial killer, but he’s so charming and all consuming. I still find myself wondering if I made him proud, which is ridiculous. And Ains, jesus, I though Ainsley was safe from it.” He pauses, dragging his hands down his face. “But that was my mom, calling me. Apparently she hasn’t shown up to work for a few days. Said she needed some time off, but she’s been to see him every single day, and it’s been twenty years, and he’s somehow gotten all of us back to him within a few months of each other. He’s behind bars and locks, and is literally chained to the wall, but he still has us in his grasp, seeking his approval.”

Dani notices his hands are starting to shake. 

“I didn’t even know Ains was seeing him. I’ve failed her-“

Dani grabs his hand, and he startles. “Breathe.” She tells him, squeezing his hand until he listens to her. “You’re going to be okay. And I’m sure your sister will too.” 

He’s staring at their hands again, and she doesn’t let go until he sighs, slumping back against the couch.

“Thanks, For you know, staying and dealing with all this.” He waves his hand around, and Sunshines chirps at them from her post.

“Anytime. If you need someone to talk to, or to shock you into reality with freezing hands.” She smiles at him, before pushing herself off the couch. She knows a dismissal when she hears it. “You have my number. Do you need help with the night terror locks?”

Malcolm smiles, a real, true smile, One that betrays his exhaustion, edging slightly on delirious. 

“No. I think I got those myself. Thank you, though.”

“Don’t mention it.” She grabs her coat and says goodbye to Sunshine, pulling on her gloves before she turns to say goodbye to him.

“Powell,” Malcolm says, pushing himself off the couch as he moves toward his bed. “I mean it about your hands.”

Dani rolls her eyes at him. “Goodnight, Bright.”

xXx

She’s not sure how they got here.

Well, she is. Sort of. Vaguely.

They were on the train. It’s so late, it’s early, but they closed a huge case, and Gil broke out the very good, very special whiskey, and then they were taking the same train home. 

And Malcolm decided to stand even though there was only like 5 other people in the car, so she stands with him for solidarity or companionship or whatever. And she’s been a New Yorker since the day she was born, riding subways before she even took her first steps, but even she is not immune to the sudden jerks of the train.

Which leads to her crashing into Malcolm, and Malcolm oh so valiantly grabbing her waist to steady her, which leads to her oh so causally not stepping away from him.

Which somehow, eventually led to this. His lips on hers as she falls against the door of her apartment. 

Dani is not sure how they got here, but she does not want it to end. 

His lips are soft and warm, and her heart is doing literal jumping jacks, and she doesn’t want this moment to end, ever.

But she also doesn’t know how to let it continue. This is still Malcolm, who might be kissing her, but his one hand is still decidedly on her waist, the other pushing into the wood of her door. His hands haven’t moved. And she desperately wants to let her hands travel to the front of his jacket and start undoing the buttons, to relieve him of at least one of his million layers, but this is Malcolm and she doesn’t want to push him too hard. She doesn’t want to cross his boundary line and push them back into a place that doesn’t lead to this.

To him kissing her and her trying to stop herself from smiling so she doesn’t accidentally bite his lip.

He pulls back, breathing hard, and it takes all her willpower to not grab his face and pull his mouth back to hers.

He would probably complain that her hands are too cold.

“Hi,” he says, once he’s caught his breath. He’s got the look in his eyes like they just got a case, but he’s looking at _her_ like she’s a puzzle he desperately wants to solve. 

“Hi,” she says back, but it’s more of a sigh than an actual word. 

“This okay?”

They’ve know each other for over a year know, and she considers them friends, but this is the most uncertain she’s ever heard him sound. And they’ve been through a whole lot of shit together.

Dani nods. “Totally.” She drags her teeth over her bottom lip, and Malcolm swallows hard. “You okay?”

Malcolm blinks, and his cheeks flush pink

She wants to kiss him again. She wants him to move his hands.

“Totally.”

Slowly, she reaches up, dropping one of her hands on his shoulder, the other coming to rest just below the collar of his shirt.

“Restraining order,” he teases, voice hoarse. Before she can roll her eyes and kiss him again, he grabs her hands and brings her fingers up to him mouth, gently blowing over them. 

It’s intimate in a way that makes her knees weak. He’s going to be the death of her.

“Malcolm.”

He hums, pressing a kiss to her fingers. She uses her free hand to open the first button of his vest and his ice clear eyes snap up to hers. 

“Dani.”

She pops the second button, and his lip quirks up. She wants to kiss the corner of this mouth. So she does.

She slides her hand to the back of his neck, and he hisses when hers finger brush against his skin, but then he’s kissing her again.

And Dani doesn’t know where this is going, or really how they got here, but for right now, in this moment, she’s good. 

They can figure everything else out later.

She snaps the final button of his vest. 

His catches her lip on his teeth.

Yeah, she decides. They can figure it out later.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it. This is my first time writing for them, and I'm not sure if I have their voices down yet. But they are killing me. Very excited for a their 5 season (at least) slow burn. Title from Lord Huron's "NIght we met".
> 
> I'm over on tumblr [here](https://fallinfor-youreyes.tumblr.com/) if you wanna scream about this show with me.


End file.
